Pandora's Box

  Pandora’s Box

  Camilla Porter

  Copyright © 2019 by Camilla Porter

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Chapter One

  Sam

  Work had been brutal. As a beat cop on the streets of San Diego, my nights could be trying, but tonight was the kind of night that made me think seriously about early retirement.

  Just inhaling and exhaling hurt as I sat in my grey SUV and tried to get the courage to pull my uniform shirt off. I was meeting my friend Tina for a drink at the Gossip Grill on University Avenue and wearing the uniform in a bar is frowned upon by the department. But taking it off would require a Herculean effort that I wasn’t sure I was prepared for.

  My whole left side ached, and I could feel the swelling under my breast increase with every move I made. The emergency room doctor had said that nothing had been broken, but in the morning I probably would wish something was.

  In addition to the aching ribs, my left arm throbbed, wrapped tightly in gauze and taped to cover the stitches and cement burn my elbow received when a three hundred fifty pound gang member named JoJo decided to body slam me and skid my flesh across the cement walkway instead of putting his hands behind his back as I had kindly asked even though he had no problem putting them upside his girlfriend’s head just moments before.

  Luckily my instincts kicked in and I not only got out from under him but was able to get him down on the ground using my taser, and in a bonus moment, made him piss his pants. It was a small victory in an otherwise draining night. That and the fact that I am told to go home early and given the next two days off.

  It’s a little after nine by the time I get my bearings and begin undoing my shirt slowly. It’s a Wednesday night which means that it is happy hour from two until close, and happy hour at the Grill meant that if you bought one drink you got a token for the second drink free. The best part about the token was it had no expiration date and you could use it any night and Tina had a pocketbook full. She said she was saving it for her bachelorette party even though she wasn't even dating anyone seriously right now and typically we would use them up on some idle night like tonight. As I undo the last button my phone buzzes.

  Tina: Sorry I can't make it. Kelly is spending the night! Take a rain check? Xoxo

  Sam: Sure thing, love. Xoxo

  Or maybe it was serious after all. I sigh deeply and wince as I pull my shirt off the rest of the way. I've come this far I might as well go in for a drink.

  I pick up my phone and text my mother to check on my son Travis. He's spending the night with her. Travis's father was my partner on the beat and we created him after a bottle of whiskey and a one night stand. I say was because he was killed in a shootout six months ago during a drug deal gone bad. I missed him even though I never loved him in that way. He was one of my best friends. and we were so close that he knew that I was a lesbian before I did.

  I get out of the car and walk towards the front door as my phone buzzes. I pull it out of my pocket and look down:

  T is fine. Enjoy your night off! - Mom

  I smile at her message just as I clumsily walk right into her. The crash knocks my phone out of my hand and I'm temporarily disoriented because I never even saw her coming.

  "I am so sorry," I hear her say. "Are you okay?"

  She is leaning into the bushes searching for my phone and I'm a little taken aback by how sexy her ass is. She straightens up and I'm even more stunned by how beautiful she is. Light brown skin, dark eyes, wild curly brown hair, full luscious lips... I'm pretty sure that my heart skips a beat when she looks me in the eye. I take in her thin yet muscular frame and her small, perky tits hugged tightly by her tan tank top and I can't help but lick my lips. She is wearing dark blue jeans with little rips in the thighs and knees and I feel a tingle in my middle as I look at the smooth skin peeking out. Good God was she beautiful, I think as the smile she flashes at me sends my brain into overdrive. She continues to apologize to me as she hands me my phone, but I honestly can’t hear a word that she is saying. I shake my head in a desperate attempt to get the glitching in my brain to stop, and it takes a few seconds longer than I intended.

  "No, it's my fault. Really. I'm very sorry. How can I make it up to you?

  "I don't know Officer...?"

  "Morrison. Sam Morrison. And how did you know I was an officer?"

  "Those polyester pants are a dead giveaway, hon. Unless you're a security guard... but you're much too fit for that."

  "True! There is NO hiding these! Maybe I can buy you a drink later? To make it up to you…"

  "Maybe..."

  "Elena, come on!!" a voice calls as a dark-skinned woman, almost as beautiful as her, pokes her head out the front door. I feel a pang in my heart as I realize that this was probably her girlfriend.

  "Girlfriend?" I ask rather boldly.

  "Little early in the relationship for that don't you think? We just met!"

  "I mean... I meant... I - ..." I stammer furiously.

  "I know what you meant," she says smirking and winking at me. "My name is Elena. Elena Roberts."

  "Nice to meet you, Elena."

  "You too Sam. Maybe I'll see you inside."

  God, I hope so, I think. And I can’t help but watch her ass as she goes in.

  I wait a few minutes before going in so I don’t feel like I’m following her, and find the one empty stool at the bar, ordering myself a twenty-ounce draft beer. Happy hour usually lasts most of the night and the crowd was usually large even during the middle of the week. There were a lot of middle-aged lesbians but just as many baby dykes, and as I looked around I realized just how out of place I was. They were all reminiscent of makeup contouring videos and shopping ads for designer shoes, jeans, and purses.

  Earlier, when I stopped in the bathroom before leaving work, I took in my messy hair and the baggage under my eyes without a hint of makeup and I almost scared myself. Add in these oh so sexy polyester pants and I'm wearing a neon green sign on my back that says do not fuck me. Not that I was here for that but dressed like this the option was firmly off the table. I down the last of my drink and turn to get up when she sits down next to me.

  "Hi," I stammer.

  "Hi, is this seat taken?" she asks as she sits before I can answer.

  "I - uh, um... no. I was just leav-..."

  "Good! What are you drinking?"

  "Just beer."

  "Ugh. Just boring! Bartender! Two Clitty Clitty Bang Bangs, please. And two shots of Cuervo por favor," she shouts.

  "What did you just order me?"

  "Clitty Clitty Bang Bang?"

  "Yeah. That!"

  "I don't know. It was on the drink menu. And to be honest you look like you need it. And it was either that or The Finger Smuggler and I thought that might be a little too forward."

  I feel myself blush as she smiles and laughs.

  "So, what brings you here Sam Morrison?"

  "I was supposed to meet my friend but she got caught up with something, or I should say someone, so I decided to just grab a drink anyway. I just got out of work and it was kind of a tough day."

  "I can only imagine. Do you work on the streets?"

  "Yeah. Almost ten years on the force. Looking to move up to detective in the next year. My baby is only five but by the time he's ready for college, the cost is going to be astronomical. Better start saving now."

  "Oh, I'm sorry. I thought - ha! This is
awkward."

  "Awkward? Why?"

  "I thought you were...I thought you were a lesbian."

  "Oh, you're not wrong. I was. I mean I am. I mean- ..."

  "But you said you had ..."

  "I do. It's...complicated. But I am…interested in women. I just never..."

  "Never what?"

  As she asks this the bartender brings our drinks over. She pays for them then hands me a tumbler of what looks like whiskey and a shot of tequila. The most interesting part of the drink is the fruit. It is two orange slices peeled and still attached with a cherry placed strategically between them. It was obvious why it was called a Clitty Clitty Bang Bang.

  I'm speechless for a minute but then bring myself back to her question.

  "It's a long story. But let's just say I've done a lot of self-discovery lately and I've come to realize that I prefer the company of ladies. Well, I always have but...it's a long story."

  "Well, I would love to hear it sometime," she responds as she takes the cherry out of her drink and sucks on it. My mind immediately registers her action as suggestive but I'm so new to this that I'm not sure if I'm misreading signals. I clear my throat and take a sip of my drink.

  "Uh, maybe another time. What brings you here? Was that your girlfriend you were with earlier?"

  "Girlfriend? Seriously? Now what kind of shitty person would I be if I was here with my girlfriend and was trying to pick you up?" she asks running her fingertips down my arm.

  "You're trying to pick me up?" I choke out.

  "And not doing a very good job of it obviously," she laughs.

  "No, it's not...it's...you're doing...I just wasn't sure... I'm new at this. I thought I might have been misreading signals."

  "Well if you think I'm flirting with you... you're right," she leans in close to me and I can smell a faint hint of vanilla. "And no, she's not my girlfriend. She's my cousin. And she's here with her wife."

  She points over in the corner where the woman I saw earlier is nuzzling the neck of a gorgeous brunette in the corner.

  "That's Shayna, my cousin, and her wife is Debra. I'd introduce you but they look busy, and I'd rather spend my time just talking to you," she laughs.

  I blush again and feel the back of my neck get hot.

  "So are you from San Diego? Where do you work?"

  "Well, I'm originally from Ohio. Believe it or not, I was a school teacher there."

  "No!? Really?"

  "I was. But I ended up following someone here, a complete loser, and I couldn't get myself together. And then they left and I was really stuck. So then my father died and I brought my mom out here to live with me. And she took care of me. Until it was my turn to take care of her."

  "Oh, I'm so sorry."

  "It's okay. I mean, it's not okay but it's okay that you asked. Um, sorry. That sounded kind of bitchy and I didn't mean it to. She has dementia so I pay out of pocket for her to stay at one of the more expensive nursing homes, you know, the ones that actually have alarms on the door so the staff doesn't find her out wandering in her nightgown on Interstate 5."

  "Jesus," I mutter angrily.

  "Yeah, that's what happened when I tried to keep her in a less expensive one that my insurance company would actually pay for. You get what you pay for I guess," she says sadly as she takes a long sip of her drink. "Anyway, let's talk about something cheerier. Like what happened to your arm? It's bleeding a little bit still."

  "Ah, fuck. I've been moving it around too much. They told me to keep it elevated, but I have a hard time being told what to do," I say winking at her. "This is from a three hundred fifty pounder named JoJo who didn't want to cooperate with me. Not only did he outweigh me by about two hundred pounds he also had about six inches on me. But don't you worry. I got his ass to the ground."

  "I bet you did. You have great muscle tone, but not too much. Very sexy," she says grabbing and feeling my bicep with her hand.

  "Sexy? Yeah right!," I scoff.

  "What? You don't think you're sexy?"

  "Not in this crowd."

  "Then how come, since I've been here, you're the only face I've seen? Don't sell yourself short. You're gorgeous."

  I smile at her shyly as she puts her hand on my face.

  "Uh, our drinks are getting warm, and we're wasting good tequila shots," I say trying to sound enthusiastic. I'm not good at this flirting thing.

  "Ok, a toast then," she declares as she hands me a shot, "to new friendships and to new beginnings. Cheers!"

  "Cheers!"

  There’s an ease about being with her like I’ve known her for years and not just minutes. I’m not sure what’s happening, but I haven’t been this comfortable with someone in my entire life.

  We move to a table in the back, and one story leads to another laugh which leads to another drink and back around again, and then it's closing time before we even realize it. Both of us are a little bit tipsy as the lights come on and we cringe at the sudden brightness.

  “It’s closing time already? I feel like we just got here,” I say as I finish my drink.

  “It’s true what they say: time sure does fly when you’re having fun.”

  We split the tab and I put my arm around her waist as she puts her arm around my shoulder and we walk out of the bar together. We stumble a little bit to my car and she pulls me to her as she leans against the door. Her arms go around my waist and she interlocks her fingers behind my back.

  "How are you getting home? You can't drive," she says cautiously.

  "Not worth risking. Ever. I'm just going to call a cab," I say putting my hands on her shoulders. "How are you getting home?"

  "I live just down the street. I can walk."

  "Alone?"

  "Wouldn't be the first time..."

  "Well as an officer of the law I don't think you should go alone. Maybe I should escort you."

  "Why officer...are you trying to seduce me?"

  And I can't help but smile and laugh. Because that was exactly what I was trying to do.

  --

  It only takes us about ten minutes to get to her apartment. I'm carrying my work bag because I didn't feel comfortable leaving my gun in the trunk. It's bad enough I had to leave my car at a bar, but that won't get me fired.

  She lives in a second-floor condo on Cleveland Ave. Nice neighborhood with average rent. We make our way up the stairs and across the balcony to the corner condo. It's a cute place. Everything is tan or brown. The living room is decorated with a large plush sofa and matching loveseat, and a small galley kitchen sits to the left and to the back of the front door.

  I walk over and plop myself down on the sofa. I'm feeling a little drunk as I lean my head backward.

  "Do you want a drink? Whiskey? Wine? Water?"

  "I think I should have water," I say as I close my eyes.

  "Wise choice. That's what I was going for."

  I open my eyes as I hear her walking towards me and she stops in front of me with just one bottle of water in her hand. We stare at each other for a long minute and the air crackles between us. The tension has been thick all night, but now it seems to hum.

  Carefully she moves her knee onto the couch and brings her other leg up, straddling me. Without thinking my hands immediately go to her thighs and I gasp as she scoots herself closer to my middle. Suddenly I'm feeling very sober.

  "Is this okay?" she asks.

  All I can do is nod as my hands rub the outside of her thighs up to her hips and back down. I'm a little shocked at how bold I'm being but I love the feel and smell of her and I want to touch her all over. My thumb finds one of the little rips in her jeans near the inside of the thigh and I softly tickle the bare skin making her close her eyes momentarily to catch her breath.

  She throws the bottle of water onto the couch next to me and brings her hands up to cup my face. With her fingertips, she softly caresses the outlines of my face, over my eyebrows, across my eyelids, down my nose, over my cheeks, and finally across my lips with her t
humb. Again without thinking, I open my mouth and lick gently at her thumb before pulling it into my mouth and sucking it softly. Her eyes widen in surprise and she grins at me knowingly.

  "I have a confession to make," she states as she moves her hands down to my shoulders.

  "What's that?" I ask.

  Moving closer to me so that her mouth is less than an inch from mine she says, "I never put out on the first date."

  "Good," I say brushing my lips against hers, "neither do I."

  Our mouths linger apart, softly bumping together periodically, and then she kisses me.

  My whole body seems to light on fire as her tongue slides into my mouth and her lips tangle with mine. I have kissed more people than I have slept with and I have never felt like this with any of them. My hands move to her ass and I pull her closer to me as she wraps her arms around my neck. Getting my balance I stand us up, ignoring the pain in my ribs and elbow, and begin walking towards where I assume is her bedroom. I stop at the first door and push her up against it, kissing her hard as she wraps her legs tighter around me.

  "Bathroom," she mutters between kisses. "Next door down."

  I'm not ready to move yet as I take her hand in mine and intertwine our fingers, pushing her arm up over her head as I move my other hand to hold her ass more firmly as I begin to rock against her. Our mouths and tongues clash and tangle and both of us are sweating as the tension between us explodes. My head is spinning and we haven't even taken any of our clothes off. I feel myself grow wetter at the thought, and at this moment I need to get her into the bedroom.

  I'm a whirlwind of emotions as I carry her to the room. I have never had sex with a woman even though I have been sexually attracted to them since before I even knew what that meant so I am both nervous and anxious. But I am also hornier than I have ever been in my life. She is making me so wet and so hot that I feel like I might explode if I don't fuck her.

  I try to stop thinking as I push the bedroom door open and walk us over to the bed and lay her down. I adjust us so my thigh is between her legs and hers is between mine. Our kiss is desperate and breathless, neither one of us wanting to be the one to stop first. Her hand goes to the back of my head and tangles in the short spikes of hair pulling firmly as I gasp out loud into her mouth. I push my hands up under her shirt and smile into her mouth as I grasp her bare breasts in my hands, flicking her nipples with my thumbs as I squeeze and rub and caress her tits that fit perfectly in my grasp.